AndreaGail
1st January 2013, 02:39 PM
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The end of the 2012 also marks the end of the 75-watt household light bulb. And the new year means that the days of the ubiquitous 60-watt bulb and less-loved 40-watter are also numbered.
Blame, or credit, the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007, supported by both political parties and signed by President George W. Bush in December of that year.
The law created efficiency standards for everything from lighting and appliances to automotive mileage and building energy use.
The law did not "outlaw" the old bulbs. What it did was require that by 2014, common household lighting had to be at least 27 percent more efficient.
To smooth the transition, the lighting industry has been annually phasing out the old-style incandescents based on their wattage, starting with the 100-watt bulb. Manufacturers stopped making the 100 watter on Jan. 1, 2012.
A year from now, U.S. manufacturing of the 60-watt and 40-watt bulb will stop. In all cases, bulbs that are already in warehouses and on store shelves can be legally sold.
When they are finally gone, consumers will have three options: Halogen bulbs, compact fluorescent, or CFL, bulbs and electronic, or LED bulbs. (LED is the acronym for light emitting diode.)
Of the three, halogens are the least expensive, but they come with somewhat of bad reputation. For many consumers, the word halogen summons up images of extreme heat, probably because they are thinking about 500-watt halogen construction lights or 300-watt torch lights that were once common in dormitories - and the cause of some dorm fires.
The high-efficiency halogen bulb that meets federal energy standards, replaces the common household bulb and screws into the standard, medium-based household socket is about as hot as the bulb it replaces. But it's more efficient.
The tiny halogen capsule inside the familiar-shaped bulb uses less power and lasts about twice as long as old-fashioned bulbs. Also, it contains no mercury, is instantly bright and can be used with a dimmer switch.
For example the halogen that replaces the old 100-watt bulb uses 72 watts. The one that replaces the old 75-watt uses about 52 or 53 watts and the replacement for the old 60-watt uses 42 or 43 watts, depending on brand.
CFL bulbs have been championed by efficiency groups as the ideal replacement, and at this point probably are the most-purchased replacements for the old-fashioned incandescents. Some power companies help consumers pay for CFL bulbs, either with direct subsidy to the retailers or coupons sent to consumers.
The bulbs have progressively shrunk in size and price, now easily fit in most household fixtures and cost less than $2 each if bought in multi-packs.
CFLs are more than 70 percent more efficient than the old incandescent bulbs, meaning a CFL using 23-to-26 watts can match the light output of the old 100-watt bulb.
Many consumers insist that the CFLs don't seem to last the 8,000 to 10,000 hours that the manufacturers claim they will. And even the industry agrees that as they age, fluorescent bulbs dim.
Most CFL brands now come in "warm white" for home use, eliminating earlier consumer objections to the "ghoulish" quality of the light the early CFL bulbs produced. Mercury content has been slashed. And some are designed as "instant on" bulbs, meaning the warm-up time has been minimized to a couple of seconds.
GE Lighting offers a halogen-CFL hybrid that truly is instantly bright because the halogen capsule leaps to full brightness in a fraction of a second, and then slowly dims as the CFL warms up.
Though still likely to give most consumers "sticker shock," LED bulbs are slowly gaining store shelf-space - and consumer acceptance - as their price falls from about $50 to the $20-to-$30 range. The bulbs are rated to last about 25,000 hours, or more than 20 years if used an average of 3 to 31/2 hours per day.
LEDs are the mileage champs of lighting, squeezing more lumens from every watt than any other household lighting technology.
For example, GE's 9 watt LED household bulb is easily as bright as the old 40-watt incandescent. Philips offers a 121/2-watt LED and an 11-watt LED that replace the old 60-watt bulb. Osram Sylvania offers a 14 watt replacement for traditional 75 watt incandescent. All of the LED bulbs can be dimmed, though to what level depends on the make.
http://www.cleveland.com/business/index.ssf/2013/01/manufacturing_ends_for_75-watt.html
Blame, or credit, the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007, supported by both political parties and signed by President George W. Bush in December of that year.
The law created efficiency standards for everything from lighting and appliances to automotive mileage and building energy use.
The law did not "outlaw" the old bulbs. What it did was require that by 2014, common household lighting had to be at least 27 percent more efficient.
To smooth the transition, the lighting industry has been annually phasing out the old-style incandescents based on their wattage, starting with the 100-watt bulb. Manufacturers stopped making the 100 watter on Jan. 1, 2012.
A year from now, U.S. manufacturing of the 60-watt and 40-watt bulb will stop. In all cases, bulbs that are already in warehouses and on store shelves can be legally sold.
When they are finally gone, consumers will have three options: Halogen bulbs, compact fluorescent, or CFL, bulbs and electronic, or LED bulbs. (LED is the acronym for light emitting diode.)
Of the three, halogens are the least expensive, but they come with somewhat of bad reputation. For many consumers, the word halogen summons up images of extreme heat, probably because they are thinking about 500-watt halogen construction lights or 300-watt torch lights that were once common in dormitories - and the cause of some dorm fires.
The high-efficiency halogen bulb that meets federal energy standards, replaces the common household bulb and screws into the standard, medium-based household socket is about as hot as the bulb it replaces. But it's more efficient.
The tiny halogen capsule inside the familiar-shaped bulb uses less power and lasts about twice as long as old-fashioned bulbs. Also, it contains no mercury, is instantly bright and can be used with a dimmer switch.
For example the halogen that replaces the old 100-watt bulb uses 72 watts. The one that replaces the old 75-watt uses about 52 or 53 watts and the replacement for the old 60-watt uses 42 or 43 watts, depending on brand.
CFL bulbs have been championed by efficiency groups as the ideal replacement, and at this point probably are the most-purchased replacements for the old-fashioned incandescents. Some power companies help consumers pay for CFL bulbs, either with direct subsidy to the retailers or coupons sent to consumers.
The bulbs have progressively shrunk in size and price, now easily fit in most household fixtures and cost less than $2 each if bought in multi-packs.
CFLs are more than 70 percent more efficient than the old incandescent bulbs, meaning a CFL using 23-to-26 watts can match the light output of the old 100-watt bulb.
Many consumers insist that the CFLs don't seem to last the 8,000 to 10,000 hours that the manufacturers claim they will. And even the industry agrees that as they age, fluorescent bulbs dim.
Most CFL brands now come in "warm white" for home use, eliminating earlier consumer objections to the "ghoulish" quality of the light the early CFL bulbs produced. Mercury content has been slashed. And some are designed as "instant on" bulbs, meaning the warm-up time has been minimized to a couple of seconds.
GE Lighting offers a halogen-CFL hybrid that truly is instantly bright because the halogen capsule leaps to full brightness in a fraction of a second, and then slowly dims as the CFL warms up.
Though still likely to give most consumers "sticker shock," LED bulbs are slowly gaining store shelf-space - and consumer acceptance - as their price falls from about $50 to the $20-to-$30 range. The bulbs are rated to last about 25,000 hours, or more than 20 years if used an average of 3 to 31/2 hours per day.
LEDs are the mileage champs of lighting, squeezing more lumens from every watt than any other household lighting technology.
For example, GE's 9 watt LED household bulb is easily as bright as the old 40-watt incandescent. Philips offers a 121/2-watt LED and an 11-watt LED that replace the old 60-watt bulb. Osram Sylvania offers a 14 watt replacement for traditional 75 watt incandescent. All of the LED bulbs can be dimmed, though to what level depends on the make.
http://www.cleveland.com/business/index.ssf/2013/01/manufacturing_ends_for_75-watt.html